Widescreen: A celebration and a history lesson, 'Pose' was the show of summer
The best TV show in the immediate post-Targaryen era is not “Stranger Things” or “Orange is the New Black,” though Netflix's big guns did make this deathly hot summer a bit more bearable.
The third season of the former added a delightful new character in adventurous ice cream slinger Robin (Maya Hawke), a new BFF for dolt-turned-dreamboat Steve (Joe Keery) and plucky protagonist Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo). The final season of the latter delivered a satisfying closer without sacrificing realism; the women's prison saga did not have a happy ending for everyone, especially not grief-stricken Lorna (Yael Stone).
The best show of the season has been delightful, adventurous, satisfying, realistic and grief-stricken. It's “Pose,” the early-'90s portrait of New York's LGBTQ ball culture that wrapped up its second season this week on FX.
Anchored by Pray Tell (Billy Porter), the avuncular master of ceremonies for his community's dancing and modeling competitions, and Blanca (Mj Rodriguez), a transgender woman who becomes surrogate mother to other young people shunned by their families, “Pose” is an underdog story in a world of hatred and HIV.
Stakes are high for Blanca and her children, including trans woman Angel (Indya Moore), a beautiful model hired to be the face of a makeup line — but a sleazy photographer who knows her secret could end her career if the cocaine doesn't do it first. Damon (Ryan Jamaal Swain) is a talented dancer so good at vogueing that Madonna's choreographer wants him for the “Blond Ambition Tour” — but his boyfriend Ricky (Dyllon Burnside) has been careless in his previous dalliances.
An unflinching, definitely R-rated chronicle of poverty and prejudice, “Pose” also manages to be life-affirming and funny, especially when dominatrix and diva Elektra (Dominique Jackson) dresses down a disapproving Long Island socialite in Episode 2x09.
The season's fourth episode, “Never Knew Love Like This Before,” perfectly distills the show's power: The entire cast comes together at a funeral for fellow ballroom performer Candy (Angelica Ross), who was murdered by a john — but that doesn't stop her from saying goodbye.
Candy's ghost speaks to everyone in attendance, including the parents who shunned her when she transitioned. Finally, they understand that their son wanted to be a loving daughter, if only they had let her. Through the fantasy of television, Candy finds reconciliation. That's not the case for so many other children shunned by society.
“Pose” is a celebration, a musical and sometimes a cliché, but most importantly it's a lesson in a history that so many of us ignore. It's an essential show from writer Steven Canals and his co-creators, TV titans Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk.
Stream the first season on Netflix, and catch up with Season 2 on demand or with the FXNOW app.
• Follow Sean on Twitter at @SeanStanglandDH.